boats from the harbor master. it's up on the dock. it's not supposed to be there. but that's what happens when you have strong surges. it was chaotic this morning, but sloe things are slowly returning to normal. let me show you the video of the harbor when we arrived around 9:30 this morning. the harbor channel looked like a roaring river. there were roughly seven tidal surges in a one and a half hour span. first it rushed out, then there it came back rushing back in. it tossed many boats around. it sent others. the port director estimates at least 40 boats were lost or damaged. the slos estimatloss is estimat million and rising. one man risked his life by jumping into the boat, he was able to guide to the dock. >> it's got a lot of damage on it hitting the rocks, but if we get her out of the water next

day or so, we might be able to save it. >> reporter: the port director says there have been tsunamis in the past here in santa cruz, but never anything like this. she called it mother nature at its worst. there is still this area under local natural disaster at this time. that means they may be able to apply for federal funding to make sure that things get back to to normal as soon as they can. they say the fact that it was a tsunami, that there was a warning, they got a head's up a few hours so they were able to escort some of the commercial vessels out of the port into deeper waters to make sure that they weren't damaged because they knew what was going to happen in the narrow channel here in the harbor of santa cruz. back t to you. the harbor master says about three dozen boats were damaged today. many are a total loss. the harbor was damaged, as well, and you can see all the boats there, too, suffering severe

damage. more on what it will take to actually clean up and open up that harbor because right now no one is being allowed in into that area except emergency personnel and some reporters. >> reporter: there are dozens of boats damaged here, at least 12 have sunk to the bottom. you can see some of the debris floating in the water. that may be part of a barge. and if you pan over to the left, you can see that actually a dock has just been split in to half and it this all happened when at least four tsunami surges ripped in and out of the har brother earlier today. i also want to show you some video that was shot when the first sur surge hit. you can see just how strong it was. boats are ripped around and the harbor officials in the background are asking people to leave for their safety. again, damage here is mounting as boats have broken loose. and with all the damage, some of that debris is seeping into the

waters. but the good news at least for now is that the environmental impacts may be small. j. >> what we're looking at shear really minor. the oil in the pollutant will largely take care of itself. it is isn't concentrated enough to lend itself to being absorbed in my opinion. >> experts say the cleanup could take weeks. some boat owners say the financial impacts here to the community could be crippling. for example, i just spoke to one woman who says that there is actually a fishing tournament planned for tomorrow. at this point who knows if that will happen. for now everyone just trying to clean up the damage and get their lives back to normal. the quake that set off the tsunami lasted more than two minutes. it is the fifth strongest reported earthquake since 1900, 700 times stronger than the haiti earthquake that killed

more than 300,000 people and 30 times as strong as the 1906 earthquake that devastated the bay area. japan is still feeling the aftershocks tonight and all this means something to each and every one of you watching because we all live in earthquake country. the devastation in japan lets know how vulnerable we >> reporter: for many of us, take a look at this videotape where you can see the four faults that seismologists know of here in the bay area. they are the san andreas, hayward, rogers creek fault. they're located in urban areas. experts believe the rogers creek fault located in the santa rose area will be the next one to cause a major earthquake because a lot of tension is built up underground. there's a major difference

between the japan earthquake and the loma prieta, the one we experienced back in 1989. >> in the loma prieta, we were very close santa cruz, san jose and we then saw lots of shaking in the san francisco peninsula. the devastation in san francisco was very localized due to particular types of ground motion that caused strong shaking. >> reporter: the map you see here shows where the quake struck in japan and how far it struck below sea level. everything is computerized, but take a look at what the japanese quake looks like on paper. it looks pretty devastating and another thing that is pretty frightening, seismologists tell me that we know of the four earthquakes i told you about. there are many more that we just don't know about. we live in earthquake country.

reporting live, cheryl hurd, nbc bay area news. >> we want to bring in jeff and rob. >> jeff is live in san francisco with a look he waves we'at the seeing, bru rut rob has a look how the surf has managed to travel from half a world away. >> especially when you consider we started watching will this at about 10:00 last night yet it took 10 or 11 hours to move across the pacific ocean. when we talk about tsunami forecasting, it comes down to the generation of the event and then the energy radiates outward, travels, eventually running up along the coast. and you can see hour by hour we have buoys and reporting stations offshore that can track how strong it passed as it approached the coast. a tsunami is much different than

the average wave. a tsunami wave length as it nears the coast is almost 120 miles long. so it can last 20 to 30 minutes between the time the water comes in and out of a harbor or bay. also does it arrive at low tad oig or high tide and what is the slope angle. and that is precisely the reason why all around california we saw all different types of tsunami wave heights doing a lot more damage in some places, not so much in others. joining us with that side of the story is jeff ranieri. one of the spots still seeing tsunami advisory at this hour? >> yeah, and as you well pointed out, the way the coastline is shaped here in california and the way that energy spread out, it really depended on where you were to how high those wave heights may have been in your area. and actually right here in san francis francisco, we were in it a low

tide event. we're getting a lot of graphics coming in, some of the major happenings late last night. look at this ocean energy graphic. if you can follow the red line right to the coastline of california, it that is some of that intense power, that energy moving at a reported 592 miles per hour. it got here in a 13 hour time span traveling 7704 miles. and as rob pointed out, we're talking about peak wave heights that were all different scenarios here. one of the highest was a reit in a cove at 8.7. port san luis at 8.6. despite the advisory that remains in effect, we are still seeing people coming on out, venturing out and doing their wakeboarding and also their parra sailing or surf boarding, whatever you want to call it. it's still somewhat of a

dangerous and through i had situation. we're currently imder hey tide. >> many people here have concern about family and friends in japan. san francisco has the largest japan town in country and tracy grant is there with more for us. >> reporter: some of these people have told us that they had a hard time pulling themselves away from their televisions tonight. and that's because they're desperate to gets a much information as possible about their friends and relatives back in japan. the damage and destruction is it still being assessed in japan, but here in japan town, the neighborhood resembles what shf the buildings looked like before about the powerful earthquake. people are concerned not only about their loved ones in japan,

but what has happened to the country itself and how it will bounce back. san francisco mayor ed lee held a media conference today to talk about how san francisco is reaching out to japan in the same way that that country has done for the bay area. >> they helped us a lot back in the loma prieta earthquake and they helped the city recover. it's our time and our opportunity to help them back. and they'll need tremendous help. >> reporter: lee stressed that nuprous types today, he says without japan's help, san francisco would have not have been able to come back as quickly as it did from the challenges that came with the 1989 earthquake. live in san francisco, tracy grant, nbc bay area news. and still ahead tonight, it's morning in japan right now. people just starting to get a look at the aftermath of the tsunami and earthquake. we'll bring you new images and new video from japan.

and we are live in arizona. one of the bay area's newest residents is also one of japan's biggest stars. we'll hear from him next as we continue our coverage. plus the month the hit the north bay, caught on hit the north bay, caught on tape.

we have spent a lot of time talking about the damage and effects on the bay area. but we want to repeat whatever danger, whatever damage we're seeing on the california coast is insignificant compared to what has happened and what is happening to the people of japan.

we want to get you up to speed on the latest developments. start with the quake itself and just how scary this must have been for folks. you're watching home video much the scariest moment, people in their homes and office buildings. some of the most dramatic we saw in the city of sendai, people rushing out of a building barely missing fall dag brie. people inches away from being killed. it's the lampgest ever recorded in japan, the fifth largest ever in the world. but when the shaking was over, the danger was not. within minutes this wave was on its way to japan's northeast coast. wherever it hit devastate,

hundreds of cars being swept away. the wave came across the countryside sweeping cars, hopes, as well as it has been confirmed in that surge you are watching there are hundreds of people. the quake and tsunami death toll has already passed 1,000 by one government estimate and is expected to go higher. finally, if the quake and tsunami were not enough, you're looking at a city of 70,000 people as you can see, a majority of the city on fire throughout the night. when people a woke today, they even slept at all, will they got a good look at what was left behind when the water went down, a tangled mess of homes and cars and in some cases even airplanes. but help is on the way including here from the united states. president obama held a news conference earlier today promising help, not just hips

going, but i think the video you're watching is they're sending supplies to help replayer a nuclear rebeing a nor japan that was damaged through the earthquake, the cooling unit was damaged, the u.s. will military is now spending a replacement in that nuclear power plant. radiation levels a,000 times normal and 75,000 have been evacuated. >> and a sports star is responding to the disaster in his hometown, as well. matsui is one of many japanese players worried about his loved ones at home. raj is in scottsdale, but you had a chance to catch up with matsui? >> reporter: we are in the middle of arizona for baseball spring training but baseball not the topic of conversation here. everyone talking about the tsunami and earthquake and one of japan's biggest superstars is here with us in the desert. we spent some time with him earlier today. matsui, a huge superstar in

japan, a big superstar with the yankees. this is his first season here with the oakland a's. he'll be living in the bay area, but in the offseason, he lives in tokyo. needless to say, very emotional today concerned about his friends and family overseas and their safety. will they are okay. however, matsui such an inspiration and role model from the bay area to new york and all the way back to japan. a lot of people interested in what he has to say and including the japanese reporters that follow him every step of the way every day. but like we said, not baseball the topic today. it was all about what's going on back home for them. said he's been watching television all morning long trying to get some reports. here is matsui along with his translator. >> translator: certainly relieving to know that there is that kind of support, but my prayers are -- i just pray that all the people there that's been

affected are safe and hopefully they're okay. >> reporter: matsui thrilled about the support from around the world and around the country and even around the bay area that he's hearing and he's receiving. now, here is something special with the oakland a's doing. matsui along with each suzuki, they'll team up with the as and mariners for a fund raiser in oakland. the opening weekend of the baseball season, april 1st at the oakland coliseum. if you go to any of those throw games, a lot of funds from those games can dedicated for the people in japan. so pretty thighs story from the after thes and matsui. but once again here for baseball, a lot of people talking about what's happening in japan. about reporting live from arizona back to you in the bay area. want to turn it over now to george who has been online to get in touch with people, friends in japan. and hear their stories about how they're doing with the after math of the earthquake and the

tsunami. >> a friend of mine who works for the "wall street journal" is in fukushima. he says we're hearing the reports about the problems it at the nuke cheer pclear power pla. scary to say the least. and a reporter for the associated press in tokyo, her latest tweet, morning announcement vee at loud speaker, conserve energy, electricity supply strained. i was facebook chatting with a friend of mine here in the bay area. he lives in san jose. his father-in-law lives right here. this is tokyo. his father-in-law was on a train for five hours, stuck on a train for five hours, could not get home. this is how it's impacting all throughout japan. one more facebook chat.

a friend says, yes, felt it. very scary but i didn't imagine the damage was that fwhad tokyo. maybe my voom room is so messy, very scared to go back to my home in tokyo. so talking to my friends on facebook and twitter and how they're fairing with this earthquake and tsunami. >> george, thank you very much. just ahead, we'll pause from our coverage for the return of the giants to increases bay area. raj continues his coverage from spring training. back with a preview of the world champions. and of course the latest on the impact of the earthquake in japall [ banker ] when ashley's violin teacher told her parents she was gifted,

they were thrilled. she's a natural vibrato. oh. we started saving for this music camp in vermont. so i told them about some of the wells fargo online savings tools like my savings plan, which helps them set up and monitor a savings goal. until we found out that maybe her teacher uses certain terms a little bit loosely. rebecca is clearly very gifted. [ banker ] we decided to roll that money into ashley's college account. turns out there's seven gifted kids in ashley's class of nine. [ male announcer ] wells fargo. with you when it's time to save. ♪

the earthquake sent powerful waves heading 5,000 miles across the pacific. the surge arrived on our coast this morning and of course headed under the golden gate bridge, as well. this is what it looked like. no damage or injuries reported ifrns the b inside the bay, but surges are expected to last in to tomorrow and people are being warned to stay away from the surf line especially directly on the coast. . >> and that's where jeff has been all day. he joins us with talk of what hour bay area forecast looks like over the next few days. >> reporter: well, we're certainly going to be watching of course the coastal wave action as you just mentioned into tomorrow. and despite the tsunami advisory that remains in effect, we still see plenty of people out on the water. for whatever reason. once that tsunami warning got downgraded to an advisory, it was like the flood gates opened,

no wording there intended, but literally people came out in droves to get in this water. we are still under caution with that tsunami advisory. let's get a look. the japan quake was an 8.9. how did this compare to our bay area quakes? it was 1,000 times stronger than that. 1906, 30 times stronger than that. so that puts it into perspective for those of you in the bay area. meanwhile we will stay with drier weather for the start of saturday. then the showers will be starting to build. by saturday night and also if to sunday, we'll see the areas of scattered showers coming back into the mix. it looks like by sunday night we could have some being a couple races in the north bay down to the peninsula. we'll start in the low to mid-40s for the east and shoudt bay. and as we head in to 4:00 p.m.,

temperatures in the low to mid-60s for your saturday. and once again the sun breaking through the clouds with that gradual increase and eventually a chance of showers late. your seven day forecast, we do have the time change on sunday. spring forward your clocks. and each day next week, we have a chance of showers. and a reminder, a chance of an earthquake each and every day across the world. could our next quake be in the next couple of weeks? you never know. it's always time to be prepared here in the bay area. >> good advice. thank you, jeff. mee eacok. bacuaha latest on the when wmeco back. [ female announcer ] gold bond ultimate softening lotion. seven moisturizers plus shea butter for softer, smoother skin. this stuff really works.

never in my lifetime did i think i could walk 60 miles in 3 days. 60 miles compared to what a cancer patient goes through is a walk in the park. from the moment i registered, people started immediately

supporting me and asking me how they could help. you meet the most wonderful, inspiring people. when you accomplish those 60 miles, it's truly life-changing. (man) register today for the... and receive $25 off your registration fee. because everyone deserves a lifetime.

one more look, live pictures from the chopper in santa cruz, some of the damage from the tsunami. want to thank you for joining us for this special edition of bay area 5. >> "nightly news" is next and then we're back at 6:00. good night. california should be proud. we were the first to ban smoking on airplanes. the first to have smoke-free bars and restaurants. all while saving over $86 billion in health care costs... and over a million lives. we've done a good job. but even if you were born today, you'd still grow up in a world where tobacco kills more people... than aids, drugs, alcohol, murder and car crashes... combined. we have a lot more work to do.